Emily St. Clair
Biography Some would be so bold as to suggest that her business success is nothing more than a run-off of her father’s. Emily St. Clair would hastily disagree with you. Although her father’s popular and already established restaurant served as a foundation upon which to build her business knowledge, she has most definitely flourished of her own accord. Despite the fact she is the oldest child of Nicolas and Adrienne St. Clair, she had always an air of maturity about her regardless of her age. That coupled with her wicked sense of humor, independence and obvious intelligence meant she was someone her younger brothers and sister used to, and still do, look up to. Growing up, whilst her siblings spent their time enjoying childhood and fooling around, she focused on what she would need to accomplish to ensure a prosperous future. That didn’t mean she couldn’t bond with them though and she always made sure she had time for her family, Daniel in particular. Coming from a family as rich as hers had its perks, though. Although she had businesses awaiting her, ones she would eventually take over entirely, further education was an expensive luxury she could attain out of want rather than need and so she headed to the city’s only university, Belmonte. Shortly in to her time at school, she met what would soon be her future husband – Jacob Bennett. Despite being a highly respected businessman who was a decade her senior, the two clicked almost immediately. Things moved in to serious territory quickly, although they managed to keep their relationship on the quiet for a reasonable length of time. All until she fell pregnant with their first child, Aurélie. Jacob had feared the publicity that would be drawn to him over knocking-up a nineteen year old girl who he hadn’t even married would be all the wrong kind and so, before rumors of her pregnancy began to surface, they eloped to Hawaii. Don’t get it wrong though – although the couple had married so hastily because of Aurélie, it didn’t mean they weren’t completely in love. Two years later, they welcomed Jenifer in to the world and everything seemed utterly perfect. By now she had quit school entirely and focused all of her attention on raising her young family, whilst Jacob with his prestigious law firm provided for their every need without hesitation. They were the poster couple for the perfect family. All until Jacob had found out about Nicolas’ less than legal behaviors. By this point Jacob’s law firm Bennett & Gallagher was considered one of the most respectable around. The idea of being tied up with a father-in-law who was quickly being caught out amongst fraud and scams was something he couldn’t risk. It could ruin him. When he had told her that it was her family or him, she was left speechless. How could someone expect her to choose between the love of her life and her father? That wasn’t he answer he’d wanted to hear. Apologetically, after a brief separation, he filed for divorce. A life that had once been flawless was suddenly off the rails and she didn’t know what to do about it. The divorce was finalized on Aurélie’s eighteenth birthday, putting an end to their marriage of almost twenty years. The worst thing about it all was that Jenifer resents Emily for her choice. She now lives with her father and rarely speaks to her mother. Emily hastily remarried to a business tycoon, Paul Barrington, desperate to fill the void that she was left with. The lack of someone to love. Of course, he wasn’t Jacob, but the idea of being alone scared her. A few months later, Paul was killed in a ‘suspicious’ car collision. The suspected party? The Russian Mob. Now she is left a single mother and a shadow of the strong, independent woman she was before.